Bengaluru–Mumbai sleeper okayed

Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has approved a Vande Bharat Sleeper train between Bengaluru and Mumbai, adding a second overnight route to India’s sleeper version of the service. (indianexpress.com) Vaishnaw conveyed the approval in a letter to Bengaluru Central member of Parliament P. C. Mohan, who posted the communication on April 11, 2026. Moneycontrol reported the planned terminals as Krantivira Sangolli Rayanna Bengaluru station and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus in Mumbai. (moneycontrol.com) A sleeper train is built for overnight trips, with berths instead of chair-car seating used on most existing Vande Bharat services. Indian Express reported the Bengaluru-Mumbai train is expected to improve long-distance night travel on one of India’s busiest intercity corridors. (indianexpress.com) The approval comes less than three months after Indian Railways launched its first Vande Bharat Sleeper on the Howrah-Kamakhya route on January 17, 2026. That train was developed by Bharat Earth Movers Limited using Integral Coach Factory technology, according to Indian Express. (indianexpress.com) Indian Railways said the Howrah-Kamakhya sleeper carried 1.21 lakh passengers across 119 trips in its first three months and ran at more than 100 percent occupancy. That early load factor has been cited by the railway ministry as evidence of demand for premium overnight rail travel. (indianexpress.com) The broader Vande Bharat network has also expanded sharply since its February 2019 debut on the New Delhi-Varanasi route. The Ministry of Railways said more than 9.1 crore passengers have taken over one lakh trips on Vande Bharat trains since launch, with 3.98 crore passengers in financial year 2025-26 alone. (thehindu.com) Indian Express reported that 162 Vande Bharat trains are now running on routes across the country. The same report identified New Delhi-Varanasi as the busiest route so far, with more than 73 lakh passengers carried since 2019. (indianexpress.com) The Bengaluru-Mumbai approval does not yet amount to an announced launch date, timetable, or fare chart. For now, it signals that Indian Railways is moving the Vande Bharat brand beyond daytime fast trains and deeper into the overnight market. (indianexpress.com)